Too much sugar... from fruit!

Though I almost always stay under my calorie goals, it seems I'm always over on my sugar goal for the day, by a lot!
I've tried to cut out most packaged snacks (most, I'm only human), but it seems like almost all my sugar is coming from fruit.
Like today - I ate a couple cups of grapes and 1/2 a pomegranate, which together are more than 60g of sugar!
Should I be concerned? Should I eat less fruit? Is the fruit in sugar somehow better than the fruit in a candy bar? It's gotta be! (I know there's the whole fiber thing). Thanks for any thoughts!
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Replies

  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
    As long as you don't have a medical reason to watch sugar/carbs, you don't need to worry.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,575 Member
    It's fruit, Frederick.
  • yarwell
    yarwell Posts: 10,477 Member
    " Is the fruit in sugar somehow better than the fruit in a candy bar? " No, it's potentially the same stuff. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1181259
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    Fruit sugar is no different than refined sugar if that's all you look at.
    It's possible to eat too much fruit and over do the sugar.
    The disconnect is what accompanies the sugar in fruit vs some refined, processed junk food. With fruit you're getting vitamins, minerals and fiber vs varying levels of empty calories otherwise.
    Fruit is good, and yet we should still moderate our intake if it becomes a problem.
    Answer for yourself.
    Personally, I did not get fat on my apple consumption or carrot addiction.
    Just keeping it real... :D
  • Amy3935
    Amy3935 Posts: 94 Member
    Obviously I didn't get fat on fruit, I got fat on things that taste much better!
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried. Really I'm looking to blame my plateau on something, but it should probably be on me.
  • LeonCX
    LeonCX Posts: 862 Member
    Not many obese or diabetic gorillas in the world, so I would say you can eat fruit.
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    Obviously I didn't get fat on fruit, I got fat on things that taste much better!
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried. Really I'm looking to blame my plateau on something, but it should probably be on me.
    Up protein and lower carb or replace some your fruit consumption with veggies - dreadful, horrible veggies...lol

  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    edited November 2014
    yarwell wrote: »
    " Is the fruit in sugar somehow better than the fruit in a candy bar? " No, it's potentially the same stuff. http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1181259
    It's not the sugar that makes fruit so much healthier but the fiber, vitamins and minerals.
    Still, if you eat too much fruit, the sugar will affect the body just as a candy bar would, but that is rare. Most people are not obese from eating too much fruit.
  • Squatch3099
    Squatch3099 Posts: 87 Member
    Nothing to worry over unless there is an underlying medical condition. I stay away from refined sugar as much as possible.
  • J72FIT
    J72FIT Posts: 5,958 Member
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    Should I be concerned?

    No. It would be a good idea though to track fiber. Try for 15 grams per 1000 calories minimum...
  • Fruits and all good carbs won't make you fat or gain weight, fat will.
    The body needs carbohydrates to trive. Every cell in our bodies run on sugar.
    I was gaining weight when eating a poor 1200cals SAD diet, with only veggies and lean protein.
    I now eat at least 2.500cal/day of mostly carbs (fruits/veggies/starches), and still lose weight.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried.

    If you read the reasons for the WHO and other medical limits on sugar, which is what the MFP limit is based on, they focus on "added sugar," not sugar that's in fruit and veggies and dairy. That's not because the sugars are different, but that the reason to have such low sugar limits is not because of any negative effect of sugar itself (the only one mentioned in the WHO's explanation of its limit is on teeth), but because eating too much sugar in items that are otherwise calorically dense and don't add many nutrients is believed to be a contributor to obesity in general, by leading people to over-consume calories and under-consume more nutrient dense foods.

    IMO, this isn't really applicable to someone who monitors her calories and knows where her sugar is coming from, and it certainly doesn't suggest that going over MFP's rather arbitrary limit with fruit could cause any problem for an otherwise healthy person (someone with diabetes might be another issue).
  • lorib642
    lorib642 Posts: 1,942 Member
    LGarcia44 wrote: »
    Fruits and all good carbs won't make you fat or gain weight, fat will.
    The body needs carbohydrates to trive. Every cell in our bodies run on sugar.
    I was gaining weight when eating a poor 1200cals SAD diet, with only veggies and lean protein.
    I now eat at least 2.500cal/day of mostly carbs (fruits/veggies/starches), and still lose weight.

    huh? only fat makes you gain weight
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried.

    If you read the reasons for the WHO and other medical limits on sugar, which is what the MFP limit is based on, they focus on "added sugar," not sugar that's in fruit and veggies and dairy. That's not because the sugars are different, but that the reason to have such low sugar limits is not because of any negative effect of sugar itself (the only one mentioned in the WHO's explanation of its limit is on teeth), but because eating too much sugar in items that are otherwise calorically dense and don't add many nutrients is believed to be a contributor to obesity in general, by leading people to over-consume calories and under-consume more nutrient dense foods.

    IMO, this isn't really applicable to someone who monitors her calories and knows where her sugar is coming from, and it certainly doesn't suggest that going over MFP's rather arbitrary limit with fruit could cause any problem for an otherwise healthy person (someone with diabetes might be another issue).
    ^^^^^^^^^
    jjbsve7vakq1.jpg


  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,565 Member
    LGarcia44 wrote: »
    Fruits and all good carbs won't make you fat or gain weight, fat will.
    The body needs carbohydrates to trive. Every cell in our bodies run on sugar.
    I was gaining weight when eating a poor 1200cals SAD diet, with only veggies and lean protein.
    I now eat at least 2.500cal/day of mostly carbs (fruits/veggies/starches), and still lose weight.

    Wrong...eating more than you burn makes you fat, whether it comes from carbs/sugar, fat, or protein
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried.

    If you read the reasons for the WHO and other medical limits on sugar, which is what the MFP limit is based on, they focus on "added sugar," not sugar that's in fruit and veggies and dairy. That's not because the sugars are different, but that the reason to have such low sugar limits is not because of any negative effect of sugar itself (the only one mentioned in the WHO's explanation of its limit is on teeth), but because eating too much sugar in items that are otherwise calorically dense and don't add many nutrients is believed to be a contributor to obesity in general, by leading people to over-consume calories and under-consume more nutrient dense foods.

    IMO, this isn't really applicable to someone who monitors her calories and knows where her sugar is coming from, and it certainly doesn't suggest that going over MFP's rather arbitrary limit with fruit could cause any problem for an otherwise healthy person (someone with diabetes might be another issue).

    do you know for certain that MFP's suggested sugar limit is "arbitrary"? they just plucked any ole number?
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    One thing we should pay attention to is portion sizes and the recommended daily amounts. Generally, naturally occurring sugar in food is ok as long as you stick to the portion size and daily amount guidelines for servings recommended. If you want to lose weight, you have to eat less calories than your body burns. Many can lose weight just eating at a calorie deficit, but, you may benefit more from eating a balanced diet that follows the guidelines to get nutrition that your body needs. Your choice on how you want to fuel your body and spend your calories.
  • 50sFit
    50sFit Posts: 712 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    LGarcia44 wrote: »
    Fruits and all good carbs won't make you fat or gain weight, fat will.
    The body needs carbohydrates to trive. Every cell in our bodies run on sugar.
    I was gaining weight when eating a poor 1200cals SAD diet, with only veggies and lean protein.
    I now eat at least 2.500cal/day of mostly carbs (fruits/veggies/starches), and still lose weight.

    Wrong...eating more than you burn makes you fat, whether it comes from carbs/sugar, fat, or protein
    Right, the old fat-is-the-enemy theories have been long debunked.
    Welcome to 2014...

  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited November 2014
    Dave198lbs wrote: »
    lemurcat12 wrote: »
    Amy3935 wrote: »
    I guess my concern is that when MFP is telling me my goal is 45g and I'm regularly eating 90+.... I should be worried.

    If you read the reasons for the WHO and other medical limits on sugar, which is what the MFP limit is based on, they focus on "added sugar," not sugar that's in fruit and veggies and dairy. That's not because the sugars are different, but that the reason to have such low sugar limits is not because of any negative effect of sugar itself (the only one mentioned in the WHO's explanation of its limit is on teeth), but because eating too much sugar in items that are otherwise calorically dense and don't add many nutrients is believed to be a contributor to obesity in general, by leading people to over-consume calories and under-consume more nutrient dense foods.

    IMO, this isn't really applicable to someone who monitors her calories and knows where her sugar is coming from, and it certainly doesn't suggest that going over MFP's rather arbitrary limit with fruit could cause any problem for an otherwise healthy person (someone with diabetes might be another issue).

    do you know for certain that MFP's suggested sugar limit is "arbitrary"? they just plucked any ole number?

    "Rather arbitrary." Yes, I think so. There is an explanation given for why MFP picked the number they did, which is quite subjective and not well defended, IMO. This makes sense--any number chosen is going to be the same--given how all over the place the limits are and how most of them focus on "added sugar" anyway. That's not really a problem so long as people don't misunderstand and think there's some actual hard evidence behind the number or some health reason or weight-loss reason why going over the number will hurt them. However, seeing how common the fear that going over sugar will affect weight loss and, especially, the concern about going over based on fruit, when within calories (not a concern based on WHO's reasoning), makes me think that the limit as currently used is often misunderstood or taken out of context.

    It's pretty analogous to the macro numbers, which are fine as starting points, but hardly some kind of ideal macro breakdown which everyone should follow. And as with the sugar limit they also give rise to all kinds of odd concerns, like that going over protein will prevent weight loss.
  • xRiverX
    xRiverX Posts: 149 Member
    LGarcia44 wrote: »
    Fruits and all good carbs won't make you fat or gain weight, fat will.
    The body needs carbohydrates to trive. Every cell in our bodies run on sugar.
    I was gaining weight when eating a poor 1200cals SAD diet, with only veggies and lean protein.
    I now eat at least 2.500cal/day of mostly carbs (fruits/veggies/starches), and still lose weight.

    ^^^^^^this high carb taps into your bodyfat^^^^^^^^ reverse dieting^^^^^^^^^^